


it’s like the sun came out

by interstellarbeams



Category: Bridgerton (TV), Bridgerton Series - Julia Quinn
Genre: F/M, Idiots in Love, Intimacy, Romantic Fluff, The Author Regrets Nothing, Tickling, inner thoughts, newlyweds, unashamed Fluff cause the author craves it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:54:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28414227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/interstellarbeams/pseuds/interstellarbeams
Summary: Daphne wakes up after her wedding night with many thoughts swirling through her mind.
Relationships: Daphne Bridgerton/Simon Basset
Comments: 47
Kudos: 344





	it’s like the sun came out

**Author's Note:**

> I can’t get enough of my baby angels so I had to write a little fluff piece. I’ve loved Simon and Daphne for awhile (Regé-Jean and Phoebe played them flawlessly and that chemistry 🔥) and couldn’t help but want to play in JQ’s (and Chris VanDusen’s) sandbox. Any mistakes are mine.
> 
> Thanks to Sara for being my sweet beta and being so supportive. 😘 
> 
> Kudos and comments are appreciated! 💕

_Cause I'm intertwined  
And I'm running blind  
But I don't mind  
I'm so glad it came to this_

_Waking Up Slow_ \- Gabrielle Aplin

  


————

The lanterns that had been burning the night before had long since extinguished themselves when Daphne woke up. She stretched, expecting to feel the coolness of her familiar bed sheets and see the calming blue walls of her bedroom at Bridgerton House, but the dark wainscoting of the ancient inn was the farthest from that sight. And the soft rush of breath emitting from the sleeping man beside her was not something she was used to. 

Daphne lifted herself up on her elbows to watch him sleep. The frown between his eyebrows that had so recently resided there, was smooth as he dreamed. She longed to kiss him, just there, but she was afraid to wake him from such a peaceful slumber. 

She watched his beloved face for a moment, the memory of his confession the night before echoing in her head, over and over again, like the repetitive sound of her music as she tried to perfect one run. Eloise would scoff at her becoming so trite that she would melt over a slew of romantic words, but it wasn’t just the words that had affected her; it was the look on his face as he had stared her down and told her of his feelings. No man had ever looked at her like that, like he was made of porcelain and her response could shatter him into a million pieces, like a tea cup dropping to the floor. 

She stretched, soreness in unexpected places making her wince and then blush at the thought of their activities the night before. Maybe the ferociousness of his kiss in the garden should have apprised her of the passionate act of love, but her mother’s fumbled explanations and her innocence had left her with nary a clue. 

The urgent need to relieve herself forced her to leave the comfort and warmth of the bed and once she had finished her business, she stepped to the windows that were dark with predawn stillness. Now that she had woken, there was no chance that she would be able to sleep, too  
many thoughts swirled in her brain to allow for peace. 

She hadn’t thought much about the physicality of the intimacies shared on the carriage ride to the inn. She had been nervous, of course, and worried that perhaps Simon was incapable of doing his duty towards her but she trusted her new husband and decided to lay those fears to rest. But then he had requested separate rooms when they had arrived at the inn and she had a sudden fear that her attempts to force his hand had pushed him even further away from her. 

Pacing her rooms, her heartbeat had raced, but not because of the quickness of her steps.

She couldn’t fathom spending the rest of her marriage sharing barely a look with her husband. Of waiting in awkward silence across from each other at the breakfast table, while he read the paper and she pretended like everything was fine. Simon had claimed to be her best friend and now that he was her husband she had yet to see that side of him return. She had wanted to find love and companionship like her parents had enjoyed, she couldn’t stand for her marriage to become one of those that so many in the ton shared. 

An ache in her chest had forced her across the floor towards the door, no thought but to fix what had broken between them, however when she had moved to turn the knob it had twisted under her hand and there he stood before her. Her breath had caught at the sight and she had wondered, fleetingly, if the beauty of him would ever _not_ cause that reaction within her. But then, he had asked her down to dinner. 

To say confusion raged within her would be an understatement. She couldn’t comprehend what had changed except that he had grown to despise her for what she had done, and the thought broke her heart. So she called him out on it, and the next thing she knew such beautiful, _surprising_ words were pouring out of him and her fears were assuaged.

_My thoughts of you never end._

He felt for her. He wanted her and despite not knowing exactly what would come next, her body had reacted to his the way a warming brick reflected the heat of the fire that it had been thrust into. Heat had flushed her cheeks, burning her skin where his hands had touched and setting fire to her insides. Feelings that she had barely come to realize suddenly igniting her like a candle wick when a taper was brought to it. 

His lips trailed down her neck and she felt she may combust, but then, she didn’t want to miss a thing about this moment. The feelings he was evoking muddled her mind but when his fingers unfastened her dress she was quick to shove the sleeves down her arms, just so she could drag him closer without the encumbering fabric. The restraints of her corset had never felt so confining as they did then and a sigh escaped her at the loosening of the ties, though a completely different bondage now held her in its grasp — the greedy bands of desire that now flowed through her were encouraged by the tightening of Simon’s embrace and the warmth of his hands that searched innocent skin with wild abandon. 

Daphne gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth. She turned her head slightly, but her husband was still asleep and wasn’t aware of what reliving the night before was doing to her. She bit her lip, determined to distract herself from such impure thoughts. No matter that she was a married woman, surely one shouldn’t revel in such feelings in the light of day. 

Nevermind that the sun had barely begun to rise, the gray light of dawn lit the courtyard outside the window and Daphne found herself watching as the inn’s servants bustled about, already starting their days when hers had yet to begin. 

The maids walked by with baskets under their arms, the white of the sheets inside bright despite the dimness and Daphne watched as they tossed their heads, faint laughter filtering up to where she stood watching. She felt a faint homesickness in that moment, for she would rarely see her own family’s servants any more. The ones who had raised her and who she had lived with for so long. She would miss them greatly. 

She blinked her eyes against the dampness in them and cleared her throat quietly. She should feel grateful. She had finally found the man of her dreams, literally and figuratively, and would now be spending the rest of her life with him. But despite the confidence she held, as her mother had groomed her and trained her for this life, she still felt a little nervous about meeting the Duke’s servants in Clyvedon… wondering if they would like her and if she could actually run such a large household. The thought was baffling, and something she hadn’t often considered before her marriage to a duke. 

The farrier drew a pair of horses out of the stables and she marveled at the beauty of the white mare and dark brown stallion, their coats such a brilliant contrast. She had barely given the horses a glance the day before, her thoughts on saying goodbye to her family for the first time in her life, and the wonder of embarking on a new life as a married woman. She knew the Duke must have many beautiful things, horses, jewels, homes even! Not that she hadn’t lived a rich and sheltered life before but now she was a duchess, imagine that. And now she had all the responsibilities of a woman of title. 

She found herself lifting her hand to touch the glass, the coolness of the morning outside chill against her fingers and she thought to move away from the window and back to the bed and her warm husband when the soft silk of her robe slid against the bare skin of her arms. She glanced up to see Simon standing behind her, his eyes bright despite the early hour.

“You’re awake early, dearest.”

Daphne scrunched her nose at him as she slipped her arms into the sleeves of her robe.

“No good?” he asked, the warm rumble of his sleep rough voice sending chills through her.

“It’s just… that’s what Mama calls me. It might be rather awkward to have you call me that.”

“What about ‘my love’?” he spoke, leaning closer, his chest pressed up against her back as he wrapped muscular arms around her waist. 

She could feel the heat of his skin through the thinness of her nightgown and sighed as she leaned back against him. The closeness of him doing more than her robe to keep her warm. 

“My love will do,” she teased, a smile lifting her mouth as she leaned her head against the side of his jaw — although in reality she was still in awe that he loved her, after all the trials and mislaid plans they had suffered through. 

“Oh, it will do… and here I thought you longed for my love,” he teased back, his arms loosening as his fingers moved to her unprotected ribs and tickled the sensitive skin there.

“Simon!” she shrieked as she tried to evade him, struggling to pull away, but he wouldn’t let her escape. “Stop!”

“Have you learned your lesson now, my love?” His smile brightened, eyes crinkling as he looked down at her.

She breathed harshly, still trying to escape his tickling but her breath caught at the wonder of his smile in such close proximity and stopped her struggle to reach up and place one tentative hand against his cheek, thumb smoothing against the corner of his mouth.

“What, what is it?” His gaze sobered and she instantly missed the happiness that had so briefly shown on his face.

“It’s nothing. I— I only wish to see you smile like that, _always_.” She stared into his brown eyes and she could see uncertainty in their depths, so she pulled him even closer, pressing her lips to that same spot where his frown creased his forehead, then trailed a kiss down his cheek, the roughness of his stubble against her lips causing goosebumps to erupt across her skin. Then their lips met in the softest of kisses that left her satisfied yet still yearning for more. 

“I want only to make you happy, Daphne. I’m sorry if— if my inconstancy kept you wondering about my feelings for you. It was not my intention. I was just confused and struggling with the tenets I had set down for myself so many years ago.”

“Oh, Simon, that’s all I want for you, too. I— I’ve had this idea in my head for so long about who my husband would be, but it was never a fully formed image. Until you came along, I didn’t know _you_ were who I was looking for. Your face, it’s the one in my dreams, and now, you’re here. You _are_ my husband and I love you so much.” 

Simon’s lips trembled as if he were searching for the right words, but she gave him no time to respond as she pressed up onto her toes in order to kiss him, silencing any response he may have given. His large hands splayed across her back and she gasped into his mouth as he drew her closer. 

The sun continued to rise behind them, setting the wooden floors ablaze with an orange glow and casting diamond shaped patterns from the leaded glass windows across the bed where he laid her down. 

Daphne couldn’t help but think, as auspicious as her wedding day had been, arriving sunny without a cloud in the sky, this day was even better for it. Her future might not look as she had always planned it, but now she had Simon — his love surely made up for any future disappointment.


End file.
